


Capacity to Love

by theWickedWitchofFeels



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Angst, Canon Extension, Death, F/F, Sad, Sea Devil - Freeform, engagement ring - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-06
Updated: 2015-07-06
Packaged: 2018-04-07 22:57:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 807
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4281132
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/theWickedWitchofFeels/pseuds/theWickedWitchofFeels
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>My first Sea Devil (Cruella x Ursula) thing :) I've been kind of loving this ship from afar for awhile, but I saw a Sea Devil fluff one-shot and I'm like, hey, I like this. ANGST. </p><p>The capacity to love quote is paraphrased from JK Rowling, btw.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Capacity to Love

Ursula settled back on the lumpy yet surprisingly comfy futon, flicking through the channels of her father’s centuries-old television set in his shanty by the sea. It was something of a downgrade even from her rundown apartment, but after these long years apart from her father, it was good to be able to spend time with him again. And, she thought with a smile, Cruella seemed to love it here; or at least she had the one time she’d been able to get away from Gold and Maleficent to visit. Her two other former allies hadn’t spoken to her since she’d left them; last she knew they were still fighting the Savior, but Regina had fully defected to the blonde sheriff’s side. 

Brrrng. Brrrng.

The default ringtone sounded from her pocket, along with the accompanying vibration. Ursula suppressed a sigh and drew the cheap little flip-phone out. 

It was Maleficent. Ursula frowned and hit Call. 

“Ursula?” The dragon queen’s voice was strained, though with what Ursula could not tell.

“Yes?” 

“You need to get down here. Now. It’s...it’s Cruella. Gold didn’t want me to tell you, but I know how much she meant to you…” 

Ursula’s blood ran cold. “Where are you?” 

“The bottom of the gorge.” 

“I’m on my way.” 

…

 

Ursula leaned forward in her seat, silently urging her father’s piece-of-crap pickup to go faster - she had a bad feeling about this, a very bad feeling indeed - 

She braked at the mouth of the trail down to the bottom of the gorge. Springing from the pickup’s cab, she ran to the trail - and froze in horror.

Maleficent and a dark-jacketed figure she recognized as Mr. Gold stood silent over a fallen figure; at her appearance they looked up. Gold’s gaze was impassive, but Maleficent’s looked at her with what could almost be called sympathy, and a token amount of grief even. And below them…

“Cruella,” Ursula breathed, her deep brown eyes wide in shock. She descended the trail as if in a trance, unable to believe what she saw - but I really should, we’re villains, isn’t that always our lot? - 

Her white fur coat, always so meticulously clean - Ursula had often teased Cru for it - now lay haphazard, dulled and streaked with dirt and what looked like scorch marks. 

“She went after the Savior’s son,” Gold said, his voice cold and distant. “She killed her to protect him.”

“Oh, Cru, you fool,” Ursula murmured. 

Too blinded by her anger, her hate… why didn’t you listen to me? Why, Cruella? You were no idiot; I had thought...I thought you loved me…

Ursula’s shoulders slumped, long-absent tears burning at her eyes. Villains do not cry.

But also, villains do not love.

And yet there was no other word Ursula could think of to describe what she felt for the strange woman; Cruella of the penciled eyebrows, the badass car, the many furs. Ursula had perhaps been the only one to see past that. And what she saw, she fell in love with. 

To be human, to be “good” includes the capacity to love. 

Cruella loved me. 

Ursula gently lifted back the coat from Cruella’s face. Her pale blue eyes were still open, staring at nothing, her lips slightly parted. 

“Cruella?” Ursula whimpered, though as soon as she had shame washed over her. 

Villains do not show weakness. Villains do not grieve. 

But also, villains do not love.

Ursula’s heart clenched, and she stood abruptly and made for the trail. She paused by Maleficent briefly, exchanging a look with the dragon queen.

“I’ll tell you when the funeral is to be,” Maleficent told her quietly. Ursula nodded briefly. 

She practically fled from the scene, her jacket flapping with her movements. She felt the dead weight of a tiny box in her pocket, now worthless with its recipient gone.   
She drove back to the sea, seizing the box out of her pocket and wading in waist-deep. She took a deep breath and opened it. 

Will you marry me, Cruella de Vil? 

She would never know what Cruella might have said, now. Likely laughed, in that rare, real laugh of hers that was barely audible, but lit up her eyes and made her mouth curl in the way that Ursula loved. Likely swept Ursula up in a flurry of furs, said “yes” in that deep voice of hers, so scary to others but only reassuring and also somewhat arousing (in the right context - oh, who was she kidding, it was arousing all the time) to Ursula. 

A surge of anger coursed through her, and Ursula drew back her arm and threw the ring with all of her strength. It landed many yards out to sea, gone forever. 

Villains do not mourn. 

But then, villains do not love.

And I loved you, Cruella de Vil. Oh, did I love you.


End file.
